Opinion

Saturday, 7 May 2016

Liberals across India have downgraded Jawaharlal Nehru University, the
erstwhile flag bearer of liberalism, after Jadavpur University managed to
produce a ruckus in the campus out of nowhere over the screening of ‘Buddha in
a Traffic Jam.’ Experts believe this move would give Jadavpur University a
competitive edge over JNU in the race to become the hub of radical activism.

Speaking to media, an erudite liberal said, “What did those guys at JNU
did?They screamed azaadi, got arrested, and were thrashed outside the court.That was so lame,” laughing out loud, he
continued, “This is not how you fight your battle.”

“But you have been advocating for freedom of expression all throughout
JNU incident.Have you changed your
stance now?” we asked.

“But this is freedom of expression.We did not like the movie.So, we
decided not to allow the screening to happen.”

“But how is it possible to assess a movie without watching it?”

“We guessed.See, we realized
our voice was not reaching the right audience…”

“Which audience?”

“Common, downtrodden people of this country, and we needed to change
the approach to make our voice heard.”

“But barring a handful of people no one concurs with you.”

“That’s your opinion.”

“Ok, but what message does vandalizing cars or beating people convey?”

“Our views are profound.Our
values are relevant to current socio-political climate.And anybody challenging them would face dire
consequences.”

“So, you would take the law into your own hands, eh?”

“Read the news carefully,” he opened a popular websites and read,
“Standoff between ABVP supporters led by BJP leader Roopa Ganguly and JU
students after she forcibly tried to enter the campus.”
he looked at us with a self-assured smile and said, “So, who is breaking the
rule?Have you seen a single tweet on
this from any of our friends in the media houses?So, this doesn’t even qualify as news.Now if you excuse me, I have to read an
article about Sadiq Khan, the son of a Pakistani immigrant to the UK, who has
become the mayor of London.Barkha Dutt
has been voraciously tweeting about it.”